The Forest of Sleepers (Nowhere Book 2)

t h i r t y - s e v e n : a t t e m p t s

 The nothingness of Gwydyr had been so void of anything, feeling it all now was nearly overwhelming.

As Marigold stood in the cathedral, she inhaled deeply, feeling electricity travel from her fingertips and up her arms, until it enveloped her whole body in warmth.

"How do I awaken them?" she asked, still staring at the statues as Silas stood beside her.

But before Silas had to say anything, Marigold felt it.

A pull against her conscience, as if her soul were being tugged into another world while her body stayed still.

She closed her eyes.

Was this what Birdie had experienced when she'd awakened Gwydyr?

Electricity ignited her body until she felt as if she could do anything she wanted. She could fell a kingdom or uproot trees if she had a mind to.

Darkness consumed her vision until the buzz of energy in her mind calmed.

In her mind's eye, seven figures stood across an inky expanse.

Marigold went to them.

The statues remained silent and immovable, but Marigold's draw to them was unlike anything she'd ever felt before.

But just as she reached them, stretching out a hand that was glowing with light, the pull inside of her began to loosen.

She heard Silas crying her name from somewhere far away.

She was slipping. Falling. Losing her grip on the power inside of her.

No!

The power untangled like a spool of thread cut in half, exploding from her in an uncontrolled blast.

Marigold flew through the darkness until she hit something hard.

She smelled dust before her eyes opened again.

The cathedral was destroyed. The statues were broken.

Though the ceiling remained intact, everything else looked like a tornado had blown through its interior.

Most of the trees and overgrowth had been overturned and two of the stone columns lining the aisle had been obliterated.

Had she done all of that? The answer was obvious, but Marigold had a hard time believing it.

She was lying in the rubble of her failure.

She wiggled her fingers, then her toes. Nothing was broken, but she felt warm blood trailing from her ear.

Silas clambered to his feet after shoving a small tree trunk off of him. His face was angry as he glared at Marigold.

"I told you to wait," he said.

Only then did Marigold register the pain in her wrist and looked down to see that it had been hit by a stone that fell from one of the columns above. A purple bruise was already making its way across her skin. She held it to her chest, defeated.

"I almost had it," she retorted.

"No, you didn't." Silas rubbed a smear of blood away from his cheek. "You can't just walk in here and expect to awaken ancient guardians on a whim."

"Then how do you suggest I do it?"

Silas flicked a piece of rubble from his jacket. "There's a place I'll take you to."

Marigold glowered at his back as they picked their way through the rubble and out of the cathedral. Why was Silas always so angry? She'd just told him she'd save the forest. His forest. At the very least, he could be calmer.

She was about to say as much, but when she emerged back into Gwydyr, all resentment faded and transformed into a new kind of fear.

The forest was gray. Lifeless. Dying.

Marigold's heart pounded in her chest.

She knew she'd done this--damaged Gwydyr--somehow when she'd attempted to awaken the sleepers. It was frozen in time, half of it having vanished.

She gritted her teeth. "Not a word," she spat at Silas.

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Hi guys! How's your week going? Ready for another round of TFoS? =P

~Do you think Wyatt & gang will get to Marigold in time?

~What do you think will happen?

General thoughts?

Thanks so much for reading! You guys really make writing this story worth it!